All you need to know about San el-Hagar development works

CAIRO - 7 May 2020: Head of the Central Department for Engineering Affairs, Antiquities and Museum Projects Waad Abul Ela said the construction of the wall in San el-Hagar is underway within the development work that is taking place in the region.

Abul Ela further stated that the instructions of the Egyptian government are being closely followed. The instructions that stipulate reducing the number of workers and taking precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, as masks and gloves should be worn while working.

Moreover, Abul Ela explained that the construction of a wall around San el-Hagar region aims at protecting the area in the first place and raising the efficiency of the region- within the Egyptian-French project- and after the approval of Europe and the foreign affairs of France to finance the project. It also comes as a prelude to preparing the site of the ancient city of Tanis in Sharkia Governorate to be an open museum.

This project comes in light of the coordination protocols between the Egyptian and French sides, and within the framework of the efforts of the Ministry of Antiquities to raise the level of services in archaeological sites. The ministry attaches great importance to the ancient city of San el-Hagar, in which French archaeological missions have been operating for nearly 90 years.

In coordination with the French Mission for Excavations in San el-Hagar, supervision and implementation of this project has been assigned to the Ministry of Antiquities and the French Institute of Oriental Archeology (IFAO), benefiting from the experience of the Louvre Museum and many French scientific institutes, especially the University of Montpellier, the Interdisciplinary Center for Heritage Conservation and Restoration (CICRP), and the Cheops Archeology Fund.

The project is supported by the French Ministry of Culture.

The project includes setting up an interpretation center and providing instructions and facilities for visitors, in addition to the restoration of the ancient door of Shoshenq III cemetery and other monuments on site and the protection of royal tombs against rain water.

The project also aims at preserving and restoring the royal tombs, preparing the royal tombs to receive visitors, and setting up informative signs on the site.

That is in addition to creating electronic pages that provide data and archival pictures of the various discoveries, and displays artifacts and different pieces discovered in the royal tombs, thanks to the QR codes placed on the guide boards.

It is worth mentioning that Heritage awareness training will be offered in San el-Hagar schools.